Last week, Typhoon Mangkhut hit the northern Philippines with winds of up to 190mph. As it made landfall, it had the equivalent force of a Category 5 hurricane, such as Katrina, which all but destroyed New Orleans in 2005.
It left a trail of devastation. Houses were destroyed. Public buildings had their roofs ripped off. There were landslides and roads were blocked. More than 60 people are known to have died, including at least four in Baguio City, where the Cypress Christian Foundation School is supported by World In Need. The city was completely cut off for several days.
We heard from our representative, who lives in Baguio City, and runs the school. He also helps the local community, purifying water and showing them how to make cheap, nutritious foods that can be taken with them in times when disaster makes evacuation necessary.
He told us: "Our school was not much affected by the storm, losing a few roof tiles and having some pipes damaged. We did lose electricity for about three days. However, some of our neighbours' houses were flooded right up to the second floor. Some people who live on the mountains were killed in landslides, buried in mud and sand, and the city's drainage system could not cope with the amount of water, so there was a lot of flooding, landslides and damage."
